£6.3m home will be blueprint for elderly

A £6.3m home which is set to open in Wythenshawe will be the benchmark for care of the elderly throughout the world say its proud developers. It is hoped that the modern design will find favour with its residents and rid care homes of their "antiseptic" image.

ONE of the most innovative care homes in the world is about to open in Wythenshawe.

The Peele is a £6.3m development by Manchester Care - a not-for-profit organisation that took over the running of Manchester Council's care homes in 1992.

The building, on Walney Road in Benchill, will provide a home for 108 people and incorporates the latest designs for elderly care.

These include replacing long corridors with open-plan communal living areas and selecting building materials to create a warm, homely feel.

As well as rooms fitted with telephones, TVs and computers with broadband access, the Peele features health treatment rooms, a consultancy suite, sheltered gardens, modern staff call systems and a cinema.

The 15 care homes currently run by Manchester Care will eventually be replaced with buildings following The Peele blueprint.

Huw John, Manchester Care's chief executive (below), said: "We set out with the ambition to create a care home for the future generation.

"After more than three years of planning and construction I think we have achieved an exceptional development that at first glance could easily be mistaken for a modern hotel.

"The building itself will support people with conditions like dementia. Long institutional corridors were a dreadful challenge for people with dementia and mental health problems, and so have been replaced with a more open plan design.

"We've also tried to future-proof the Peele. It's not just for the people who are moving in during the next few weeks, but for the next generation of older people."

It now runs 15 care homes in Manchester and two in Salford, as well as supported sheltered housing schemes and home care services. It looks after more than 3,000 people in the two areas, with about 550 in its residential care homes.

The Peele will replace four older homes in south Manchester and is the first phase of a modernisation programme. The company's entire property holding will eventually be replaced, in partnership with Manchester Council.

Huw said: "The Pozzoni Design Group has designed the home.

"The company sent its staff around the world to research innovative designs for older people and people with dementia.

"They went to Australia, Europe and the US to find some of the best designs and have incorporated them into The Peele.

"The building will allow people to live in much smaller groups.

"You hear 108 people and think Victorian institution but it's actually nine smaller homes within one building, with central support systems, much more flexible.

"We're very excited about the building. To be honest there are a lot of people watching us now to see how it works, but that is the price you pay for being pioneers."